


In memory of

by MadHatter13



Category: The Memoirs of Lady Trent - Marie Brennan
Genre: Gen, Letter to a past self, No spoilers except for the first book, not the time-travelling kind though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-21
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-10 22:58:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8942920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadHatter13/pseuds/MadHatter13
Summary: Isabella writes a letter to her younger self, the one who knew nothing of travel or politics or scandal, and knew only the barest hint of dragons.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [The_Icelander](https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Icelander/gifts).



> Response to a prompt by The_Icelander.

Dear Ms. Isabella Hendemore,

Sometimes I wonder what you would think of me now. I might assume, since I am also you, that I have the advantage of knowing your thoughts. But really, you are so different from me as I live my life now, that any assumption on my part might be in error. Blankly stating that you would be elated by my deeds and reputation ignores the many years I spent in obscurity and between the teeth of gossip-mongers. Some of my detractors would make the leap of faith that even my past self would abhor my current history, with all its scandal and mayhem, but they would be doing the both of us a disservice. Let us start from one certainity I have above all others: You have no idea what is coming.

True, in just a few years you will be expected to take your place as a society wife and produce heirs for a husband, something that seems so natural that you do not even feel apprehensive about the idea. Only later will you find that you were never suited to the role, neither of that of a Lady of Society, nor that of a mother. Even though you will grow to love your son, grief and stress will not make this readily obvious for a while. Only then will you realize the difference between the weight of a burden placed on you against your wishes, and that of one you pick up on your own accord.

But even back then you knew your happiness – your life force – depended on your proximity to dragons. The clichés sometimes have a point; sometimes you truly _don‘t_ know how important something is to you until it is taken away. True, you hope that you can somehow attach yourself to others to witness the spectacles of the natural world second-hand. But dear heart, just you wait! That may be how it begins, but that time will make up only a fragment of your journey. Your obsession (and I don‘t think I am exaggerating in using that word) will take you to the highest peaks, into uncharted jungles, below the sea itself! You will meet people more different and similar to the ones in your home country than you could ever imagine, and even marry again (more than once), sometimes for the strangest reasons . How scandalous! And a great deal of your arrogance will be replaced with understanding, and you will gain actual confidence in your abilities, instead of relying on a knee-jerk response of affrontedness of doing the job for you.

But I would not want to spoil the surprises in store – even the bad ones – because looking back, I truly can say I have lived without regrets. But you have all that ahead of you, and even if you should make different choices, I firmly believe that they would be made according to your conviction, and not out of a sense of confirming to who people tell you that you _should_ be.

Best of luck to you,

Isabella, Lady Trent

Falchester

3rd of Messis, 5662


End file.
